All aboard — everyone now

All aboard — everyone now

Last week, Gov. Ted Strickland agreed to cooperate with the governors of seven Midwestern states in seeking federal funding for development of the Chicago Hub High-Speed Rail Corridor, which would include a high-speed passenger link between Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati.

We could take this opportunity to rail against the unfairness of the Three Cs once again getting first bite of the apple, but we’ll resist. First, developing a high-speed rail system in the United States makes sense. Second, political realities being what they are, we prefer to see making Cleveland a stop on the Chicago hub as something that adds value to the high-speed rail link we really want to see — one between Cleveland and Pittsburgh that runs through Youngstown.

U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-17th from Niles, managed to get approval in last fall’s Amtrak Reauthorization bill for a feasibility study on extending the Keystone Corridor between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh west to Cleveland. Jason Altmire of suburban Pittsburgh, who represents Pennsylvania’s 4th District, is working with Ryan on a Pittsburgh-to-Cleveland link.

A physical rail link would be a complement to another Ryan proposal, development of a high-tech corridor between Pittsburgh and Cleveland — again, running right through the Mahoning Valley.

Now that the governor has made his commitment to the Chicago rail hub, it’s time for the state to show equal support for the Cleveland-Pittsburgh line.